Career guidance Definition and 114 Threads

I (22m from UK) have an undergrad in astrophysics, a masters in space engineering and have long wanted to do a PhD. After graduating my masters, I wanted a break from academia so now work as a spacecraft engineer (which is my dream career). I love my job and definitely see myself doing this as a...

So I am in high school and really considering my career in the future. So half of me wants to become an Electrical/Mechanical engineer because I really like to find out how things work, make things, and build robots! Another part of me wants to become a theoretical physicist or Astrophysicist...

[rant clipped] I digress, meander even...I found this: Autobiographical Notes of a Physicist under physics.hist.ph. A place I suspect not many of you look regularly ;) Which sounds pretty prejudiced I'm aware. :) ) This guy's experiences may well be out of date for the need of todays STEM...

Please select up to 3 members who were most impactful in the academic and career guidance forums in 2023. This is a popular vote. Polls were created by weighing activity and measure of helpfulness. Everyone nominated should feel honored. Many more could be added to this poll, we can never...

Hi all, I am looking for some advice (high-level-ish). I fundamentally enjoyed the subject material as an undergrad majoring in Physics. However, I ended up making a late change to Electrical Engineering for the sake of job applicability. I have worked as an engineer for a couple of firms but...

This is going to be long, but I request you to read it completely. I finished my Bachelor's 1.5 years ago and it in 2022, I started studying, but I have been having issues with my family and I had to work part time while I was doing this. I had to care for my ailing grandparents and I many...

Hi all, I have a problem that I’m trying to seek some help out on. I have spent nearly 20 years of my life working in Aerospace Engineering, primarily doing contract work, but doing some direct work as well. I feel like I’m coming up against a brick wall, where I can go no further. I think...

Hi everyone, I was a high school student back in 2010 and then I got problems in life where my studies were left behind. I do a lot of self study. But now I want to continue, do a Bs graduation degree but I don't know if any college in world allows a online physics degree. I searched for Arizona...

Hello All : hope all are fine and well : during my scientific reading i may found a way to enhance the efficiency of some sort of simple engines , now i am working on a prototype which should be ready in few weeks for testing , the question is what next ? i am interested in solid state...

Rewarding career after physics graduation - Mysterious money ? ====================================================== Thanks for your response to my threads. This is an interesting forum to seek an insight on this subject. I am surprised by recent piece . Physics professor mysteriously sent...

Hi Everyone, As the title suggests, I'm looking for some career advice. I want to go into software development (but feel free to suggest any other areas where I might be a good fit, I've also been looking at risk analysis positions). I have experience in a bunch of different areas but it feels...

Summary:: Masters in aerospace in countries which allow jobs and career path in the same country I'm entering 4th year of my undergrad in mechanical engineering from India and my interest has always been in rockets and propulsion technology. I want to pursue masters in aerospace from US...

Hi all, I am a first year student at the University of Notre Dame, and I will be choosing classes for first semester second year in a week or so. I am currently a physics major, but am getting anxious as the time to “commit” approaches. I came in not knowing what I wanted to do as a career...

Like many of you, I have always enjoyed physics and math throughout high school. When applying to universities, I was quite unsure about my goals, so I applied to both engineering and science majors. I have always been deeply fascinated by astronomy, but I enjoyed environmental science as well...

Good day everyone, a few months ago I posted a question regarding physics as a major, well fast forward about 6 months and I am studying engineering(I picked engineering(ECE) because first I get to take physics courses up to QM and second after some further research I found out that one of the...

I’m planning on attending graduate school for physics. My interest is currently in cosmology and astrophysics, but I’m keeping an open mind. I’d like to be prepared in case I choose another field, or go into private sector instead of academia. I’ve decided I want to double major in my...

If my goal job title were to be aerospace engineer, what would employer like more: Double major in aerospace engineering and physics, or a masters in aerospace engineering. The reason it is one or the other is I would only like to do only 4 years of school and I can complete a masters in four...

This may be better suited in the academic forum, or possibly not even the normal type of question asked, but I was just judging based on other similar posts. I just graduated from college this past spring with a BS in Applied Mathematics and a BS in Physics, as well as a minor in computer...

Hello everyone, Well I’m at that crossroads where I need to make a decision about what I should start moving towards as it relates to a degree, so I figured I’d get y’all’s input. So, my situation is a little bit of a complex one. Here goes: I am a senior in HS, and have been accepted to...

I was always interested in Psychology but I went into Engineering to satisfy my mother and since she's still not satisfied (who was I kidding?), I'm thinking about getting into Psychology. Can I get an M.S. in Psychology even if I already have a B.S. in Engineering? I'm sure it's not usual...

Hello everyone! My name is Tim and I am going to be a junior physics major this upcoming fall of 2018. I started college in fall of 2014 as a physics major at a junior college and joined the army national guard in the spring of 2015. I went to basic that fall and missed an entire year of school...

I am an Electrician of 14 years, now in a management position with great experience. I am looking at taking a part time study 3 year course through S.A.I.T that will allow me to get my Electrical engineering technology Diploma in 3 years all while working full-time in the city. This will...

Hello all!, Backstory: I recently graduated with a BSc in physics a month ago. I have been looking to get hired by a certain company since the start of my senior year. The position I was after was a process engineer, however I have not heard back from the company for that position, which I...

Hello All, I am currently a junior in physics and have set sights on Materials Science (Electronic Materials/Nanotechnology) for grad school. My school does not offer MS.Eng as a degree and so the only Materials Science course I can enroll in as the general "Introduction to Materials Science...

what is the academic route to become a theoretical physicist?

Hi I am graduating next year from the Univeristy of Athens Greece as a physicist so a moment has come where I have to make a big decision. I have already chosen the path of Theoretical High energy physics and I am currently working on my thesis which focuses on Q.E.D. My first ambition...

I have a bachelor's in physics but I wasn't great as a student and didn't do research. Do you think a professor at the University near me would allow me to fill an undergraduate research position so I could eventually use that experience and relationship as a reference for graduate school?

Ever since high school I have always been interested in technology and hoped that one day I would be working in a field where I would get to build new gadgets and technologies (I had a particular interest in robotics). When it came time for college I was told by my teacher that physics was a...

Hi I'm 27 years old, and planning to return to university as a mature student to study physics/astrophysics as major. I have gone through websites, reading materials, articles, and I have not found any satisfactory answers for the job descriptions of an astrophysicist. So what to expect to be...

I want to work in the field of AE, I live in India and am applying to institutions in the US for undergrad. A lot of people told me that as an international student or even as person it will be very hard to get a job in the field of aerospace if I major in AE. If instead, I major in ME with a...

Hi Everybody, I have often found myself reading through the discussions on these forums but never ended up taking part. I came here today because I desperately need career path/education advise. Many of the people who regularly post on these forums appear to be very knowledgeable so I can't...

Hi, I'm a relatively new member of PF. I have a suggestion for posters in the Career Guidance Subforum. If you need advice concerning further academic schooling or concerning careers, please specify what country you are in now, in what country (or countries) you have previously studied or...

I am from India. I have completed my masters in physics (cgpa 7) from IIT Bombay and Bachelors in Physics(75%) from University of Delhi. toefl=93, gre=304 I am planning to pursue career in medical physics (radiation therapy) in US. For that what should i do either masters or PhD in medical...

Hello PF community, I have a question about a choice that I need to make soon and I would like some opinions from the community. So I am double majoring in physics and applied mathematics at the moment, and I have been thinking about changing my second major to computational mathematics instead...

Hello everyone, I am a masters student 1/3 of the way through the mechanical engineering program at my school. At some point I have come to the realization that I am really not that mechanically inclined. It seems I have natural tendency towards circuit design and electronics. I really...

hi, I am a second year nuclear engineering student. can a nuclear engineer work in a particles accelerator, or in a synchrotron.If yes in what nuclear fields should I specify ?

Hi there My question in short is: "What would be the best field to move into if I'm looking for non-desk physics/engineering jobs" Let me elaborate a bit on this. I have a BA degree in fine art, some projects can be seen here http://frimannkjerulf.tumblr.com/ I also have BS degree in physics...

Hi, I'm currently a freshman electrical engineering student in a university and I'm having a dilemma if I am to transfer to physics or no. First of all, I chose my current program because of our electronics elective class in high school. I enjoyed the experiments back then and the projects as...

Hi In order to not let my hobby define my profession, I am trying to see what are the future career prospects for studying astrophysics. My academic track record so far is very good, and I also possesses offers for engineering courses in highly ranked universities (Imperial College, Univ...

Right now I am a student in first year engineering. The main reason i joined engineering is because I like physics and I love math. Right now I'm starting to question if I even want to be an engineer or not. It's not the work or difficulty, I do really well for myself. I'm just unsure if I want...

Let me first start by saying I'm a junior student currently majoring in Economics, a field which (I know) has very little to do with Physics, if only for some math requirements. The reason I'm in this forum, asking this particular question, is that I've lately been reading Feynman's "Lectures...

I'm a Physics Undergrad Junior, and I'm currently studying for the GRE's but I don't even know what I want to get a masters in. I refuse to go for a PhD in anything primarily because I don't want to be used as slave for 4+ years, and I have no direct passion in anything. My ideal requirements...

which should I choose for my bachelors' degree:Aerospace or mechanical

I am only in grade 10 but stupid Careers course says I have to choose a career to do a summative study on. I want to choose something that I might go into but I can't choose. The NOC list for "Physics and Astronomy" is very long--I deleted the ones I am not interested in: aerophysicist...

Hi, I am basically 45 years old postgraduate in statistics but, unfortunately, I joined private manufacturing company and worked there for 20 years. Now I have resigned from a job and searching new opportunities. But it is very difficult to get a job as industry won't accept me due to the...

Greetings, I am a master's student in engineering at Koç University(İstanbul/Turkey) and my bachelor's degree is in Physics from Middle East Technical University(Ankara/Turkey). After I finish my master's I would like to pursue a career in industrial R&D abroad; however, it seems that my...

Hi all! I am a junior at a University of California going for a major in Applied Math and a minor in Computer Science. So far I have been a TA/Discussion Leader for Calculus for a year, and I've done a presentation at a math conference for community colleges about a school-implemented study...

I'm in 11th standard and can speak English fluently. What do foreign languages do you recommend I learn in ?

Hi, I am in my first year of M.Sc. in physics. I want to pursue a research in Photonics after my Post-Graduation. i am really passionate about Physics and research... but unfortunately there is nobody to guide me in the proper way... i want to pursue research in Photonics in some of the top...

Hello everyone! I'm Meron, and I'm a high school senior. As you've already guessed, this is the time for me to think of which university I should be attending. I'm currently residing in Saudi Arabia, and studying at a school which follows the Indian system. I'm thinking of being a physicist when...